1878.] 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



279 



CROSSING AND HYBRIDIZING. 



BY TH. GREGG, HAMILTON, ILL. 



The subject of hybridization and other cross- 

 dng has ever been an interesting one to me ; 

 hence I read Mr. Miner's article on hybrid 

 Strawberries in the July issue of the Gardener's 

 Monthly, and the editorial comments thereon 

 with much attention. But if Webster's definition 

 of the term be the true one, then I judge there can 

 be no such thing as a hybrid Strawberry, a hybrid 

 Peach, or a hybrid Cherry. He says a hybrid is 

 a cross between two species, as a mule — which is 

 .a new species. A cross between two varieties 

 of the same species is not a hybrid. A cross, no 

 matter how produced, between two varieties of 

 Strawberry, or any other fruit, produces not a 

 hybrid, but a new variety of the same species. 

 Hence, your conclusion that a cross between 

 Pragaria vesca and F. Virginiana would be a hy- 

 brid, can hardly be correct, as it would still be 

 possessed of all the characteristics of a Straw- 

 "berry. A cross between a Strawberry and a 

 Easpberry would be a proper hybrid ; but it 

 would be neither a Strawberry nor a Easpberry, 

 but a new species to be called by some other 

 name. Hence, Mr. Miner may well conclude 

 that we have no hybrid Strawberi'ies. 



But all productions from the seed of fruits, it 

 may be safe to affirm, are crosses, and therefore 

 new varieties, ditiering more or less from the pa- 

 rents. Holy Writ mentions " the fruit tree 

 yielding fruit aftei- its kind,'''' at the creation. 

 Doubtless such was the case then, and would be 

 now under similar circumstances. But the vari- 

 ations of soil, climate and circumstance, have 

 produced numberless corresponding changes in 

 production ; and the means of cross-fertilization 

 have become so numerous and universal, that 

 •such result can now scarcely be possible. 



Hybridization proper, is a process of but rare 

 'Occurrence. I believe it is supposed that the 

 Apricot is a hybrid between the Plum and the 

 Peach. However that may be, it has a strong 

 resemblance, both in wood and fruit to each. 

 'Whether art can ever be brought to aid nature 

 in this direction, so as to bring about any bene- 

 ficial results, may be regarded as doubtful. Yet 

 .in these days of Avonders, such a result is possible. 

 We know little yet of nature or of nature's 

 laws. 



But I look to the crossing of varieties as the 

 >ineans by which great results are to be obtained, 

 .not only in the fruit and floral kingdoms, but in 

 ..the animal and the human as well. It cannot be 



denied that the stock-growers have made more 

 progress in this direction, than we horticulturists 

 have made. 



I close by urging horticulturists of all classes, 

 and especially the young, to press forward in 

 this interesting branch of study and experiment. 

 Rivers, Kirtland, and others, have achieved 

 great things ; much yet remains to be done. Per- 

 fection may never be reached. When it is, the 

 millenium is at hand. But the progress toward 

 it will be eternal. 



[Our correspondent confuses species with 

 genus. A hybrid between a Strawberry (Fraga- 

 ria) and a Raspberry (Rubus) would be an inter- 

 mixture of two genera. There are instances of 

 two supposed genera intermixing, but such occur- 

 rences among plants are so rare,that if this were all 

 that was meant by a "hybrid," the term would 

 never be used. An intermixture between Fra- 

 garia vesca andF. Virginiana, two species, would 

 be a hybrid : an intermixture between Albany 

 Seedling Strawberry and the Downing Straw- 

 berry would be a cross; and the progeny from 

 the Downing or any other kind, diftering from 

 its parent, without the intervention of any other 

 pollen but its own, would be a variety. It is 

 safe to say that the Apricot did not originate 

 between the Plum and the Peach. Ed. G. M. ] 



EDITORIAL NOTES. 



Fungus Spawn. — Recently we noted where 

 the spawn of a fungus had evidently been com- 

 municated from a lot of leaves from a wood to 

 a lot of Rhododendrons, destroying large num- 

 bers of them. The same appears to have 

 been noted in England in regard to other plants, 

 as appears from the following from the pen of 

 the Rev. J. M. Berkeley, in the Gardener's 

 Chronicle : " The attention of cultivators cannot 

 be called too often to the danger of supplying 

 mould to trees in orchard-houses or hothouses. 

 The white mycelium, which in such cases are 

 found between the wood and bark, belongs to 

 one of the higher fungi, and not to those parasites 

 which affect leaves. Still it is quite true 

 that these are often propagated by means of the 

 soil, and for this reason it is recommended to 

 gather and burn the leaves. Tbis is notoriously 

 true in the case of several of the fungi which at- 

 tack cereals, and Leveille has shown that it is 

 equally true of some of the yellow parasites ; 

 and so it is very probably true of the parasite 



